TSA shows off new 3D screening machine at Washington Dulles

The TSA approved a new baggage scanner, created by Analogic, that is supposed to be more efficient and faster. Veuer's Sam Berman has the full story.
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A traveler walks through a TSA metal-detector at Washington Dulles International Airport on Aug. 10, 2018, after placing his carry-on bags through a 3D scanner the TSA is testing. TSA is testing the computed tomography (CT) machines at 15 airports nationwide, with a goal of replacing all 2,000 standard X-ray machines with the 3D machines that allow a screener to rotate the image digitally to scrutinize suspicious items.(Photo: Bart Jansen, USA TODAY)

DULLES, Va. – The carry-on bags at Washington Dulles International Airport are getting a little closer scrutiny, but not because of any increased security threat.

The Transportation Security Administration chose the airport as one of the first 15 to test 3D scanners at checkpoints this summer. TSA hopes to test 40 nationwide by the end of the year. The advantage over standard X-ray machines is that screening officers can rotate the color image digitally, to take a closer look at a suspicious object without unpacking a carry-on bag.

“We believe this is a step into the future,” said Michael Stewart, the airport manager at Dulles.

The lane with the 3D machine is in the east end of the building.

Scott Johnson, TSA’s federal security director at Dulles, said the machine would improve security while processing travelers faster with bins that are 25 percent larger than regular checkpoint bins.

“There are emerging threats around the world and we want to make sure we stay one step ahead of them,” Johnson said.

TSA Administrator David Pekoske told USA TODAY’s editorial board on Wednesday that the goal is to replace all 2,000 X-ray machines at checkpoints nationwide with machines called computed tomography (CT).

“I think it’s the largest acquisition we will ever do,” Pekoske said.

The machines won’t fit in every airport because they are heavier than current X-ray machines and because some models require more power. As airports that can’t accept them now are rebuilt, TSA will help design them for CT scanners, Pekoske said.

A ramp worker opens up the front cargo door on an All Nippon Airways Boeing 777-300 after it arrived from Tokyo to Washington Dulles International Airport on June 29, 2018. Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, special to USA TODAY

A business jet taxies out for departure as a United Airlines Boeing 777 heads off into the evening from Washington Dulles International Airport on June 29, 2018. Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, special to USA TODAY

A mobile lounge controller directs the unique busses around Washington Dulles International Airport on June 29, 2018. The position is likely the only such in the U.S. Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, special to USA TODAY

Slips of paper note details on incoming international flights at Washington Dulles International Airport on June 29, 2018. Each will need mobile lounges to take the passengers to immigration control. Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, special to USA TODAY

Airport operations escorts the massive Airbus A380 as it taxies out for departure at Washington Dulles International Airport on June 29, 2018. The jet's wingspan is so large it can reach past the taxiway, presenting a risk of damaging equipment. Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, special to USA TODAY

Testing the machines at airports began in June 2017 in Phoenix and Boston. New York’s JFK airport got a machine to test last month.

Bill Frain, a senior vice president for L3 Technologies, which made the machine being tested at Dulles, said it is more precise and allows officers to screen bags faster without unpacking them. The machines collect 1,000 images of each bag, compared to four with the standard X-ray, he said.

“It’s a significant increase in technology,” Frain said. “The passenger experience is going to be much better.”

In addition to Dulles, other airports testing the machines this year will be Baltimore-Washington International, Chicago O’Hare, Cincinnati, Houston Hobby, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oakland, Philadelphia, San Diego and St. Louis.

“Our priority in terms of placing the machines initially is going to be at airports that receive flights from international locations directly,” Pekoske said.

If testing goes well this year, TSA plans to buy 200 more during 2019, Pekoske said. The machines now cost about $400,000 each, but Pekoske said the price could come down as the number of orders goes up.

Five manufacturers are competing to provide the machines, but Pekoske said it’s not clear yet whether they will all complete the testing phase.

“I don’t know, as we go through this testing over the course of the summer, how many of those vendors will still be in the competition for contract award for those vendors,” Pekoske said. “My goal is to work as quickly as we can and as responsibly as we can to get them out there.”

TSA began asking travelers at the end of last summer to remove more items from carry-on bags, to reduce clutter in the X-ray images. This spring, the request extended occasionally removing snacks from bags – not because the food was suspicious but to reduce the clutter.

Eventually, the machines can be programmed to spot suspicious items or detect them through chemical composition. The goal is to improve the precision of the screening while moving travelers more briskly through checkpoint lines.

“What that means is they can unpack with the technology,” Pekoske said.

A traveler walks through a TSA metal-detector at Washington Dulles International Airport on Aug. 10, 2018, after placing his carry-on bags through a 3D scanner the TSA is testing. TSA is testing the computed tomography (CT) machines at 15 airports nationwide, with a goal of replacing all 2,000 standard X-ray machines with the 3D machines that allow a screener to rotate the image digitally to scrutinize suspicious items.(Photo: Bart Jansen, USA TODAY)